Presidential Roles and
Powers
Formal Powers of the
President
Constitutional or expressed powers of
the presidency
Found primarily in Article II of the
Constitution (the Executive Article)
Head
of
State
The President is chief of state. This means
he is the ceremonial head of the government
of the United States, the symbol of all the
people of the nation.
Queen Elizabeth and President Reagan, 1983
President Kennedy speaks at Berlin Wall,
1963
Chief
Executive
The Constitution vests the President with the
executive power of the United States, making him
or her the nation’s chief executive.
President Clinton with Janet Reno,
the first female Attorney General,
February, 1993
President Bush holds cabinet meeting
in October, 2005
Formal Powers:
Chief Executive
 “Faithfully execute” the laws
 Grant pardons for federal offenses except for
cases of impeachment
 Nominate judges of the Supreme Court and
all other officers of the U.S. with consent of
the Senate
 Fill vacancies that may happen during recess
of the Senate (recess appointments)
Commander-in-Chief
The Constitution makes the President the
commander in chief, giving him or her
complete control of the nation’s armed forces.
President Johnson decorates a soldier
in Vietnam, October, 1966
President Bush aboard U.S.S.
Lincoln, May, 2003
Formal Powers:
Commander-in-Chief
 Commander in Chief of the Army & Navy
 Making undeclared war
 Limited by War Powers Act 1973
 President must inform congress within 24
hours of troops being used for combat
 President can commit troops for more 90
days without consent of congress
Chief
Legislator
The President is the chief legislator, the
main architect of the nation’s public
policies.
President Clinton delivers the State
of the Union Address, 1997
President Roosevelt signs into law the
Social Security Act, 1935
Formal Powers:
Chief Legislator
 Give State of the Union address to
Congress
 Recommend “measures” to the Congress
 Upon “extraordinary occasions” convene
both houses of Congress
Formal Powers:
Chief Legislator (cont.)
 Presidential Veto
 Veto Message within 10 days of passing the House of
origin
 Pocket Veto - President does not sign within 10 days
 Congress can override with 2/3 majority from both
Houses
 Veto Politics
 Congressional override is difficult (only 4%)
 Threat of veto can cause Congress to make changes in
legislation
Political Party Leader
The President acts as the chief of party, the
acknowledged leader of the political party
that controls the executive branch.
President Reagan & Vice-President Bush accepting their party’s
nomination in 1980
Chief
Administrator
The President is the chief administrator, or
director, of the United States government.
President Bush at Ground Zero after 9-11
Vice-President Johnson sworn in
aboard Air Force One
after President Kennedy’s
assassination, 1963
Chief Diplomat
As the nation’s chief diplomat, the President
is the main architect of American foreign
policy and chief spokesperson to the rest of
the world.
President Lincoln during the Civil
War, 1862
President Roosevelt and the “Bully
Pulpit,” 1910
Formal Powers:
Foreign Affairs
 Appoint ambassadors, ministers and
consuls
 Make treaties subject to Senate
confirmation
 Receive ambassadors
 Diplomatic Recognition – acknowledging
the legal existence of a country/state
Chief Citizen
The President is expected to be “the
representative of all the people.”
Informal Powers
 Those powers not explicitly written in the
Constitution
 Similar to “necessary and proper” powers of
Congress
 In the modern era (since 1933), the President’s
informal powers may be significantly more powerful
than his formal powers
Executive
Orders
 Orders issued by the
President that carry the force
of law
 Clinton’s “Don’t ask don’t
tell” gays in the military
policy
 FDR’s internment of
Japanese Americans
 GWB trying suspected
terrorists in military tribunals
Notice for Japanese “relocation,” 1942
Executive Agreements
 International agreements, usually related to trade, made
by a president that has the force of a treaty; does NOT
need Senate approval
 Jefferson’s purchase of Louisiana in 1803
• GWB announced cuts in
the nuclear arsenal, but
not in a treaty; usually
trade agreements between
US and other nations
Executive Privilege
 Claim by a president that he has the right to decide
that the national interest will be better served if
certain information is withheld from the public,
including the Courts and Congress
• United States v. Nixon
(1973) – presidents do
NOT have unqualified
executive privilege (Nixon
Watergate tapes)